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Safety and Health Management (SHM) Program

Launched in 1974 as Occupational Safety and Health, our bachelor of science in Safety and Health Management was founded in anticipation of an upswing in demand for occupational safety and health (OS&H) professionals. Throughout names changes— to Loss Control Management and then Safety and Health Management—over the last 43 years, we have graduated more than 600 OS&H professionals. More than 80 percent of them now employed in Washington, Oregon, and California, where the majority work in construction, insurance, and manufacturing. Our program now enrolls more than 75 students annually and, each year, graduates 35 industry-ready professionals. In addition, there are three program minors available in construction safety, occupational safety technology, and safety and health management.

If you are interested in pursuing the safety and health management major/minor or risk management minor, please review the program policies and procedures handbook. The handbook describes the application and admission process in detail.

Central Washington University’s BS degree program in safety and health management has been accredited by the Applied and Natural Science Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology (ABET), a global accreditor of college and university programs in applied and natural science, computing, engineering and engineering technology.

ABET accreditation assures that programs meet standards to produce graduates ready to enter critical technical fields that are leading the way in innovation and emerging technologies, and anticipating the welfare and safety needs of the public.

Developed by technical professionals from ABET’s member societies, ABET criteria focus on what students experience and learn. ABET accreditation reviews look at program curricula, faculty, facilities and institutional support and are conducted by teams of highly skilled professionals from industry, academia and government, with expertise in the ABET disciplines.

ABET is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). It currently accredits 3709 programs at over 750 colleges and universities in 30 countries.

GSPCentral Washington University’s Bachelor in Safety & Health Management program has been reviewed by the Board of Certified Safety Professionals (BCSP) and approved as a Graduate Safety Practitioner® (GSP®) Qualifying Academic Program (QAP), providing the program’s graduates the option to apply with BCSP for the GSP designation after graduation. BCSP is recognized as a leader in high-quality credentialing for safety, health, and environmental practitioners (SH&E). BCSP establishes standards for and verifies competency in professional safety practice and evaluates certificants for compliance with recertification requirements.

The GSP meets the credential requirement for the Certified Safety Professional® (CSP®), the “gold standard” in safety certification, allowing those who hold the designation to waive the Associate Safety Practitioner® (ASP®) certification examination. It demonstrates accomplishment and commitment to professional development. More information on Central Washington University’s Bachelor in Safety & Health Management program can be found at www.cwu.edu and details on the GSP are available at bcsp.org/gsp.